Kenyan international Victor Wanyama has disclosed that coach Neil Lennon was the biggest influence for him to sign for Scottish Championship side Dunfermline Athletic.
Wanyama has signed for the second-tier side on a short-term contract until the end of the season, having been without a club since the start of the year after leaving Canadian side CF Montreal.
Speaking exclusively to Telecomasia.net from Fife, where the club is located, Wanyama said a single conversation with Lennon was enough to convince him to make the move.
The two worked together when Lennon was the head coach at Celtic, where Wanyama made his name before bigger moves to Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur came along.
I spoke with coach Lennon and he asked me to come and help him and I can’t say no to him. He is a coach who has shaped my career and that is why it wasn’t hard to make that decision. We know each other well and he understands my strengths and what I can bring in to his team.
Dunfermline are placed second from bottom in the Scottish Championship and are in danger of relegation. Lennon was also recently hired to help the club drag off the relegation slots, and Wanyama coming in reinforces that ambition.
I had a conversation with the new owners of the club and they told me about the club’s short-term ambitions. They are very passionate and I saw both them and coach Lennon have something in common and I said okay, let me come and help them. With what the coach and the owners have planned, I am very sure we can be able to move off the relegation slots then at the end of the season, we can see if we get to another contract.
The 33-year -ld midfield enforcer is set to make his debut for the new club this weekend, when they take on third-placed Ayr United.
